First of all, this book is gorgeous—it has a finely textured hardcover gilt with the seal of Crowley’s A:. A:. on the front,and for bibliophiles just holding this book is a sensual experience.

The first edition of this work appeared in 2014 shortly before the authors death, in fact David Mattichak was working on editing the typescript right up to the last. The publishers had sent David the first leather copy to be finished by the binder and the remaining copies of the edition went on sale, each accompanied by a card pre-signed by the author. It was during this time that a special number of copies in silk slipcases were being made for David to share with his students, sadly he passed away having not collected the box from customs. Eventually the stock was returned and they remained with the binders until they moved to their new location whereupon the box was placed in storage amongst other boxed books for years. The books are accompanied by the ivory cards bearing the seal of A:.A:. which the author had not yet signed.

Proceeds from the sale of these copies will be used to keep his work in print for his own students and those of the Thelemic and Golden Dawn systems respectively.

A review of the book by Sandra Tabitha Cicero of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn may be found appended below:

Pyramidos: Self Initiation in the Aeon of Horus by D.G. Mattichak, Jr.

The subject of this book is LIBER DCLXXI vel PYRAMIDOS, otherwise known as the Pyramidos Ritual, a Rite of Self-Initiation by well-known magician and occultist Aleister Crowley, often called “the Great Beast” by many and “the Old Man” by his former secretary, Israel Regardie.

As author D.G. Mattichak, Jr. explains, Crowley created the Pyramidos Ritual from an earlier prototype he called the ThROA Ritual (the “Gate” Ritual) or Ritual 671, an initiation rite based on the Neophyte Ceremony of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. Although Crowley was a member of the Golden Dawn for only two years, his experience with the Order would have a lasting effect on his life and magical work.

Written after Crowley’s first attempt at creating a magical Order known as Lamp of the Invisible Light, and after Crowley’s foray into Eastern Mystical practices, the ThROA Ritual was designed as an initiatory rite for more than one person. In creating it, Crowley intended to condense the Neophyte Ceremony into its essential magical components and simplify it in such a way as to make the ritual flow better. Eventually this ritual was further refined and crafted into the Pyramidos Ritual, which was designed for use by solo practitioners and members of Crowley’s A:.A:. system of magic. However the purpose of this ritual went far beyond a simple rite for self-initiation—it was an essential component of Crowley’s comprehensive system of magic. As the author tells us, this ritual “represents Crowley’s magic at its very best, combining all of the techniques that he had learned from the Golden Dawn and that he incorporated into the A:.A:. In its purest form, it is a general purpose initiation ceremony, but beyond this it is also an excellent foundation upon which to construct other practical ceremonial operations.” The rite can be used to consecrate the Elemental weapons, or as a general “opening of the temple” ritual for further magical rites and theurgic work.

The first half of the book is concerned with the magical work of the Golden Dawn, particularly the Neophyte Initiation Ritual and the Ceremony of the Equinox. These rites are examined alongside the important instructional papers known as the Z-Documents which explained the physical movements, symbolic structure, and astral mechanics of these rituals in minute detail. Interspersed with this rich exposition of Golden Dawn ceremonies are Mattichak’s insightful comments on how sections of these ceremonies influenced or were adapted into Crowley’s work in his Order of the Lamp of the Invisible Light, as well as on Liber ThROA, and the Pyramidos Ritual.

The author gives an account of Crowley’s first attempts to create a magical order, the Lamp of the Invisible Light, prior to his work with Thelema. This is followed by a detailed analysis of the Pyramidos Ritual in terms of preparatory work, physical movements, symbolic structure, visualizations, and astral mechanics.

Although it was widely disseminated, Liber 671 was never published and remained an obscure text written in an outline form that was not particularly user-friendly. Unfortunately, Crowley’s writing style seemed to take for granted that, prior to performance of the Pyramidos Ritual, practitioners would already have basic knowledge and understanding of the Golden Dawn’s foundational rituals and Z-Documents which, especially for Probationers, was not always the case. Pyramidos: Self Initiation in the Aeon of Horus by D.G. Mattichak, Jr., bridges this information gap and supplies readers with the tools needed for unlocking this ceremony.

Thelemites and Golden Dawn magicians alike should add this text to their library. Whether you love Aleister Crowley or hate him, you can’t ignore him. Fortunately we have authors such as D.G. Mattichak to decipher the sometimes enigmatic and often compelling books of “the Old Man,” and join the ranks of others who, like Regardie, labor to make such works accessible to all to wish to learn from them. We are grateful for his insights.